William's birthday

William turned 9 on Tuesday. I'm not even

 sure how that is possible.

I get teary-eyed every time I open the pantry and look at his growth marks on the door. His physical growth is unbelievable.

I smile everytime I see him making his brother laugh, wrestling with his daddy, or coming to me for a hug. His emotional growth is incredible.

I praise God everytime I hear him singing a worship song, talking about God, or bringing his overly-worn New Testament out of his back pack. Yeah, he takes it to school EVERY DAY and gives it to his friends to read. His spiritual growth is inspiring.

In just 3 1/2 years, the tiny little 5-year-old who was once known as Little Guy or LG has grown and matured in amazing ways. (He comes up past my shoulder now and will likely pass me in height very soon.)


Daniel, Cole & William
(Cole is one of William's best friends)

I am so thankful for William. He is kind and caring, a wonderful son and a super big brother. He's taught me what it means to be a mom - and thankfully, looks over my faults for the most part. He even tried to show love and compassion when he said to me Monday night (as I was icing the cake that he requested),  "It's okay mommy - not all cakes have to look nice!" :)


Happy Birthday William!
(Thanks for joining us on Tuesday, Meghan & Jon -
sorry I didn't do better taking pics!)



Daniel's birthday Recap

Birthday morning

If I had to sum up Daniel in one word, it would be joyful. He is a happy child, and honestly, I suspect he always has been.

But the level of joy I've seen in him in recent weeks is amazing, and is surely a gift from God. He seems to be getting more comfortable and settled, and is meshing well in so many areas.

It is obvious that Daniel loves Daddy, Mommy, and big brother. He enjoys school and church. He's making friends. He thrives on routine and family time. He wants to help with everything we do (cleaning, cooking, you name it) and strives to please us most of the time.

He's stubborn and determined, traits that can cause trouble but can also work to his benefit. He eats up even the smallest praise we give him for a job well done. It's rare that he isn't smiling or laughing. He's full of quirky remarks and funny expressions. He is just plain fun.

So the opportunity to celebrate our little man was a big source of joy for him, and also for us. Daniel's birthday was a chance for us to have a lot of fun and show him that he is a precious gift from God.

Last Friday was his birthday - and he got to have the dinner of his choice. He chose hot dogs. I think the kid would eat them every day if we'd let him.

He got a few gifts on Friday, and we enjoyed a yummy cookie cake.


His train cookie cake

 




He was super excited about GeoTrax!



Saturday was his party, at the indoor playground at our church. Not only did the kids get to play, but we also hired a guy to entertain them. He's called "The Inflatable Zoo" and does songs, magic tricks, kid-friendly jokes and balloon animals. He performed at William's first American birthday, and we decided to bring him back for Daniel's. He was a hit with the kids - especially Daniel, as you'll see in one of the pictures below!



Brothers on the playground

LOVE this pic of him laughing at the music/comedy/balloon guy



He enjoyed everyone singing to him

Aren't the monkey cupcakes adorable?!

Classic Danichka






We had his party at the indoor playground at our church

 



Help Lauren find a family!

First off, I want to say Happy Birthday to my awesome husband.

Zack, I hope you have a wonderful day today!!!

As we approach the two-year anniversary of our journey to Ukraine to find William, I am once again reminded that there are so many other children throughout the world still waiting for a mommy and daddy to come and rescue them.

Another event that is just around the corner is my birthday. My mother-in-law and I were talking the other day and she said, “you need to be thinking about what you want for your birthday.”

So I began to think. I have more clothes than I should, a spacious house, a reliable car, a beautiful son, and an awesomely supportive husband. There is always food on the table, and plenty more in the cupboards. I have a wonderful church family, and the love of a Savior who died for me. I want for nothing, and there is nothing I need.

So instead of traditional birthday gifts, I want to sponsor a child from Reece’s Rainbow. And I am asking my friends, family, and blog buddies to help us celebrate my birthday and William's 2-year anniversary by supporting an orphan in Eastern Europe.


I’ve chosen to sponsor 3 ½ year old Lauren. She has some health issues that will be a lifelong struggle for her, but according to Reece’s Rainbow, she is an “active, happy and helpful little girl” who simply needs a family to love and support her. My goal is to raise $1,000 for her by November 17th (my bday). You can help make this happen!


Won’t you please help Lauren? Click on the Chip-in link below (or on the side bar of this blog) and make your donation. It’s tax deductible, and will go into an adoption fund specifically for Lauren. Once a family commits to her adoption, these funds will help offset their expenses.

Let’s make a difference in Lauren’s life!

If paying through Chip-in, please consider adding an extra 3% to cover the paypal fees that Reece’s Rainbow will incur. If you wish to pay by check, email me and I’ll get the address to you.

William is 7

Okay, so I'm very late in posting this, but I wanted to share with everyone that our [not-so-little] boy turned 7 on May 24th!!! We had a great weekend celebrating our anniversary, his birthday, and Memorial Day.

Since his birthday fell on the holiday weekend, we didn't do an actual party this year, but we certainly celebrated. We asked him what he'd like to do on the actual day, and he said he wanted a day together with just Daddy & Mommy. Easy enough! We slept in, opened presents, went out to breakfast, and then drove to Atlanta for a Braves game. This was William's first major league game, and it was definitely a good one. We had great seats (and the fact that they were free made it even better!!), William got his face painted and enjoyed lots of stadium food, his favorite player hit 2 home runs, and the Braves won BIG.

We ended the day with hot dogs on the grill and a yummy cookie cake. I can't believe our boy is already 7 - time is flying by! He's such an awesome kiddo and we're so thankful for him.

We're really enjoying the summer so far. William has VBS this week. My Dad & his wife are taking us to an amusement park this weekend (William's first experience with real rides, he's only done carnival rides once). Then it's soccer camp next week, and vacation with our friends in early July. Lots of exciting stuff - hopefully I'll find some time to blog about it all :)

Let the Celebration Begin!

My family always says that I can stretch out my birthday longer than anyone else... but there's a new champion in that area.

William's birthday is not until May 24, but the celebrating began on Monday. Since his birthday is after school is out for the summer, and the fact that there are a lot of things happening these last 3 weeks, he had his school party on Monday.











I know that's a month-long celebration, but hey, I think this kid deserves AT LEAST a month :)









We also got to meet some "blog friends" over the weekend. We met up with the Ankerich family, and their adorable daughter EllaKate. We were so glad to finally meet in person, although it felt like we've known each other a long time!

Lastly, William wanted to type a message to all of you:

titr0gi0o-0ti90o90==otuii=t0-=-t0t-69pr=0ee[o-=t0

william

I asked him what the first line says, and he told me "Go Tennessee" (Yes, he's brain-washed already! Didn't you notice the cupcakes he picked out at the grocery store?)