FCC Egg Hunt

Last year she didn't really get the concept of hunting eggs...she did this year. Of course we got home with 25 eggs and 10 of them were purple : ) Mia's mama got the girls matching outfits and they looked so cute in them. We were sad Amelia didn't make it but she was busy getting ready to go to Vietnam to get her baby brother. What a fun day!

A morning outside

Annslee spotted her basket I had set out for our upcoming egg hunts and thought our front yard would make a great place to start. At first she didn't catch on to what we were doing but soon she did. I think she liked hiding better than finding though : )

I told her she had to close her eyes really tight while I hid the eggs



She would call out the colors as she found them..hmmm..an educational egg hunt



As usual we needed to take a walk with a baby in her stroller. Today Sonya Lee got to come (yesterday it was a dog) and she pushed her around the whole block. We of course stopped to wave at people we saw along the way.



Finally she was tired of pushing her and decided the baby needed to walk on her own



She is also amazed at her own shadow lately. I tried to get a picture of her waving and talking to it but it was too hard to do. Believe me, it was really funny to see!

My silly girl

Today after her nap we were looking through some clothes. She found a purple Lilo dress and had to wear it! I thought she looked really cute in it so I asked her if I could take her picture but she thought running from me would be more fun. I gave her a box of juice to slow her down and then pretended I wanted to take it from her. She thought that was pretty funny...

Overwhelmingly nice

We put out a request for quilt squares on Malia's site and added if you didn't participate in Annslee's and wanted to now to send one for her too. Well, JiaLi's family outdid themselves. I got a package in the mail yesterday and in it was a quilt square for each of the girls from each member of their family! Yep, 7 squares and wishes for each. Michelle totally outdid herself on these (stamping queen that she is..check out her stamping site) THANK YOU so much Madden family. For those who don't know, JiaLi and Annslee are Qichun sisters and we were in the same travel group together in China. We are lucky to have remained close even though we live so far apart (sniff, sniff)



If you want to know more about the 100 Good Wishes Quilt you can go to Malia's website and look at the January 22nd journal entry. We have gotten around 40 squares for Malia so far and I love them all!!! Annslee has about 125 (hey, more than 100 is all the better) and I have found someone to do her quilt (finally...slacker that I am) so it will hopefully be done before we go to Vietnam so we can concentrate on getting Malia's done.

We met online but not like you think..

I have "met" a lot of great families through adoption. We have a common bond in the wait and then we share with each other as we grow our families. Some I have come to know through their blogs/websites, some on the Yahoo boards and a few I have been lucky enough to meet in person. We are even close friends with a couple of families we have met "online" and our children are playmates. All of that said, a few of these families could really use your thoughts and prayers right now. Please go over to their websites and leave them an encouraging word in the comments too.

My friend Susan got her referral in December and still doesn't have travel dates. She is obviously anxious to go get her daughter. Kelly is trying to make some tough decisions about her path to her child and could use your thoughts. My fellow Lovebug Lisa (we were in the same DTC group for China back in 2005) needs her TA to go get her son Brady who has been waiting for her for a long time. An online buddy named Jane should have already received her referral but it was delayed and so they are still waiting. An amazing family I have followed has six children and they are waiting to bring their seventh child home and you will be blessed reading what Karen writes about their lives together. Finally you must take a look at Amy's blog. She and her family have booked their flights and hotels in China to go get their daughter and it is a huge leap of faith because they do not have their TA (travel approval) yet. They live in Germany and due to rules about their other children travelling they must go now or wait until June. They are willing to take the chance so they can bring their daughter home now.

My friend Tracy is leaving for Vietnam to meet their son Jack in a few days. I know they could use your prayers as they travel with their two year old to get her baby brother.

I know there are many other families who could use your positive comments, thoughts and prayers. These are just a few I follow. To cover all the bases go ahead and say a prayer for every child in the world waiting to find their family and every family waiting to find their child. It truly is a miracle how we all come together!

I also have an online buddy, Maggie who is currently expecting her first child. She requested people leave a comment about the BEST part of being someone's mommy or daddy. I know all of us who have children may find it difficult to find one best thing...but head on over to her site and let her know what you think! Her posts are well written and it proves I don't just read adoption sites : )

To get to a site just click on the name and it will take you there : )

Big day

Today was a busy day! It was sunny with a high of 84 so of course we needed to be outside! We got up and got ready to go to the Zoo. Dada rarely gets to go with us so it was a real treat! She spent most of the time out of the stroller either running on her own or on Dada's shoulders.

She happily pointed out all the animals to us and had her camera so she could take her own photos.



This is for all my Gator fan friends and family. We visited Alligator Cove and she was happy to do a Gator Chomp at them. Thanks for teaching her this Uncle Ropen..but she cannot do it at a UT game ; )

Goat brushing is always a hit..this time it seemed to make him sleepy as he let out a big yawn!

She napped and then we headed back outside. She has always loved the outdoors so I am ready to spend a lot of time doing all kinds of fun stuff for the next 6 months or so






She got a new ride and she really is trying to learn how to get it moving. Of course it is pink and PURPLE! She noticed the other kids had helments and she was not happy that she didn't. Don't worry, we are headed out to get her one!

Guess what we heard??

We were playing outside with our neighbors and heard the familiar sound..the Ice Cream Truck!!! Now it is no secret she LOVES ice cream but we have never gotten it off the truck before. So Mama ran inside for money and the camera and it was everything a little two year old dreams of. First she looked at all the pictures on the side of the truck then decided on a vanilla & chocolate Snoopy. I think you can tell how excited she was from the photos : )

(as always, click on the collages to make them bigger...the expressions are worth it!)





Now this is what I call a good time!!



It was sunny and 80 so we sought out the shade of the front porch. The kids loved it and they were trying to eat it as fast as they could before it dripped all over them. I know three little ones getting baths tonight! What afternoon is complete without a ride in the wagon?

Fun at the park

Today we met Tracy and Amelia at the park to play. We knew this would probably be the last time we could play with just them as they are headed to Vietnam in two weeks to get baby Jack! As usual on the way there Annslee kept saying she wanted to swing and go down the little slide. She was very specific about not wanting to go down the big ones...as you can see from the photos she changed her mind.

The girls enjoyed sliding alone but also together. Annslee is a hand holder and is very insistent that you play along. They were too cute waiting for each other to get up there and then sliding down together.

I looked up at one point as she was getting ready to go down a slide and this is what I saw...crazy girl!

They are TWO..that is all I can say. There were a million of these spinning blocks so they of course fought over the same one. I think this is one time Annslee got a taste of her own medicine b/c Amelia was not having it. Of course they made up and were fine after Annslee had a good cry.

This was after she did a face plant going down the big metal slide that made me and Tracy nervous. Needless to say..she didn't go down that one again

The girls played hard and were ready for a rest...
We can't wait to see them as a family of four very soon. We will be following along on their journey in Vietnam so we can get pointers on taking a two year old : )

Good Mama

I was in the kitchen and suddenly she ran past me holding her cow. I went to see what the rush was and this is what I found! I wonder if he would like a Mini M&M like she gets??

News about my baby sister

Now you know I am going to make you go to Malia's site to find out what the news is : ) We are doing a website for her just like we did for Annslee so we can have a record of our journey just for her. We loved reading all the guestbook entries on Annslee's site and want the same for Malia. So, I am asking you to please check out her site, see the news on the homepage or in the journal and then take a minute to sign her guestbook. It is really nice because with this site you can order a CD of the entire thing to keep when you are finished. Annslee's is in the safe for when she wants it. Thanks for all your thoughts and prayers on our journey to Annslee's baby sister.

Bathtime girl and a thank you!

Today after her bath she spotted this bathrobe. It is obviously way too small for her but she didn't care. I have a photo of her in it (from 15 months ago) framed in her bathroom. I had her try to pose the same so I could take one of her in it now. Wow, what a difference!

(taken March 2007)

(taken December 2006)

Also, thank you so much to everyone who left a comment or sent an email expressing concern about Annslee's nosebleed. The pediatrician thought it was probably just dry air and so she recommended putting vaseline in her nostrils a few times a day and cranking up the humidifier. We have always had one in her room but I don't think it worked too well so I broke down and bought a new one. I love it!! It is really cute and puts out a ton of cool mist. We haven't had a problem since so hopefully this was all we needed.

St. Pat liked purple too..right?

We had a pretty rough start to the holiday. I woke up to her breathing rather hard on the monitor so I went up to check. Her face was covered in blood and her sheets were too. She had a pretty nasty nosebleed out of both nostrils and so she got cleaned up then came to bed with us. Needless to say, I didn't sleep after that as I lay there watching her. This was at 5 am and she awoke around 8 and all seemed fine. That was until I tried to remove the tshirt she had slept in because it was covered in dried blood. I need to tell you it was purple..so she was having none of it. She kept crying "purple, purple" over and over until her nose started bleeding again. We then decided a trip to the pediatrician was in order (I know..first time parents) and so the shirt had to come off. Of course the only solution was another purple shirt. We tried to tell her she had to wear green but she obviously thought she'd rather just be pinched all day!

I did get her a green hat so I guess she is somewhat in the spirit of the day

Don't be jealous

I had lunch with Susan today...Mama to the beautiful Lily Ana. We found each other through our blogs and then realized we were living and working very close to each other. We have tried to meet several times before but we could never work it out. Today we did and of course Annslee went along. Susan was sweet enough to bring her a terribly cute teddy bear and she hugged and kissed it several times. However, the bear did get in trouble with Annslee because he kept "jumping" off the booth and onto the floor ; )

Susan has such a sweet spirit on her blog and she is even better in person. We had a great time at lunch and hopefully the next time we meet she will be home with her daughter. Say a prayer that her travel approval comes soon as she has already waited several months!

The girl has style...

Annslee absolutely loves corn on the cob. Last night I made her some for dinner and although she refused to put on her pants before eating, she did think a nice spring hat was necessary attire!

Cool Slideshows

The Zoo!!!!

We went to the Zoo and wow did we have a long, hot and tiring day! I know in July we will be wishing for a high of 78 but because we aren't used to it we were a little sweaty today : ) On the way there I kept asking her what she was going to see at the Zoo and she would do her cow sound. I tried to prep her that we wouldn't be seeing a cow so she started doing her elephant sound and that I could deliver. We met up with Mia and Jenny for a while and then my sister came with my niece and nephews. We hadn't been to the Zoo since last fall and there was such a difference now. Annslee knew all of the animals and was so excited to see them, make their "sound" and wave at them while yelling "HI" very loudly. Luckily we are Zoo members because I think we will be going back again soon.


One of the first things you see when you get there is the meerkats. They have a tunnel you climb through and then pop up inside their "home" I took the girls and held them up so they could see. My arms got quite a workout.

We ventured over to the petting zoo. Really it is a couple of goats the kids can brush. The rest of the animals stay behind the fence because they don't want to be bothered I guess. She would have stayed here all day. She took her brushing very seriously and was so gentle. I think it is obvious from the look on the goats face that he was enjoying it.

Mia and Annslee have always been close and have a lot of fun playing together. They are getting to an age when they can entertain each other so we adults can have a break.

It is hard to see but there was a giant turtle in the tank and she wanted to give it a big hug!

We were so happy the cousins could make it. Gabe is 9 months younger than Annslee but they are about the same size so they are pretty evenly matched. She also likes being girly with Shelby and her buddy Jacob is always a lot of fun to be rowdy with! No one was really in the mood for the group photo but we had to try ; )

We ended the day doing one of her favorite things...she was swinging high in the bamboo!

How much fun can a girl have??

We headed to Charlotte to visit with grandparents, an aunt, an uncle and two beautiful cousins. To say Annslee had a great time would be a huge understatement! The weather was sunny and seventies and we took full advantage of it. We went to the park twice each day, sat outside playing, using sidewalk chalk and blowing bubbles and we also did a lot of coloring, running, chasing, eating ice cream and generally everything a two year old thinks wonderful. Of course watching her enjoy all of it was wonderful for us. (as always, click on the collage to make it bigger)

As you may know she asks for ice cream at every meal. Of course we don't say yes..we are her parents...but Gigis always say yes to ice cream!! I think she ate a half gallon herself this weekend. One night we all had a bowl and she spent her time sampling all of ours so who knows how much she really had?

Now a Gigi who gives you all that ice cream deserves a huge KISS!



She really thinks she is such a big girl and it was fun watching her with her older cousins and trying so hard to do everything they were doing. We will have a blast together at the beach this summer.

One night we went to Payton and Taylor's house to play and she had fun looking for the cat, wrestling and biting her toes (yep, check out two of the middle photos)




We had a great time, we are all exhausted and we can't wait to do it all again soon

Heading to Gigi's house!

We headed to Charlotte to see Gigi (Dada's mama) this weekend. On the way we stayed at a hotel and Annslee loved it of course. It did verify to us that we will need a suite or two rooms in Vietnam. She did not want to go to sleep because the basketball game was on TV so we all had to go to bed. I know in Vietnam with another little one and them being on different sleep schedules this could all be a problem.

Her favorite things were trying on Mama's shoes, drying her hair and riding on the bell cart.

After we left the hotel it was time to get back in the car to head out!

Before we left for Gigi's we thought we'd let her get some of her energy out at the park.