One year of knowing

Today marks the one year anniversary of us getting the call that we'd have the privilege of parenting the twins! Words can't express the joy we had that day but had we known how precious they truly are, we would have exploded with glee. God's ways are so perfect. While I loved the girls one year ago, if I had known the intensity if it, I don't know how we would have waited five months to hold them in our arms. God has shown us grace beyond measure in bringing them into our lives. 

    Recently the girls' vocabulary has exploded. It's super fun to hear them mimic us. We're still working on saying "yes" & "no" and stringing words together. 

     Another big milestone is that we are now (mostly) potty trained!! We did the three day method and the girls responded so well. It helps that they hate being dirty and wet and that they'll do about anything for candy :). 

     Oh and I must mention that the girls stayed in the church nursery for the first time last Wednesday! I felt so free. They didn't bat an eye when I left and were only slightly frantic to get to me when I returned. :) Of course the next day they came down with a stomach bug :( but it was huge to know they are comfortable staying with someone besides our parents now. Babysitters are now an option ! Hooray!!

      My family came for a late Christmas celebration last week and we enjoyed it so much. They graciously made the trip on sat-wed to help me with the girls on Monday and Tuesday. I never realized how lonely parenting can be. It was true joy to have them with us for so long! The girls haven't stopped talking about Reese, Wannie, Poppy and Uncle Shayne. (Wish I had a picture on my phone of them)

    

Six Months

I wrote this long entry on milestones from each month home then lost it. :( This will be shorter and hopefully sweeter. December 3rd marked our girls being with us 6 months!! What a joy this time has been!! We've seen God's faithfulness in sustaining us and directing us. The girls have stollen our heart in a way  we didn't know possible and have also refined us beyond our comfort. Their language has grown so much and it's a delight to get to communicate with them in a new way and experience them learning. They've received two not so great haircuts, courtesy of mama. They've grown 3 lbs and about 2 inches. Favorite time of day is when Dada arrives home from work with a close second being bath. Favorite item by far is still bunny, who is completely filthy. Sleep remains our biggest area for growth but we even see some progress there. Abbie is a serious daddy's girl and Evie equally a Mama's girl. We're humbled almost daily by Gods goodness and mercy in allowing us to parent these girls. 

Two Years Old!!

On July 16th the twins turned two. This was an especially meaningful celebration for us since we'd prayed for so long that the Lord would allow us to have them in our home by their second birthday. What a treat to get to enjoy them during this very fun age. We had our families into town and my sweet friend Jenny let us use her pool to swim. It was cloudy and cool that day but everyone was so sweet to still make the most of it. I'll give some bullet points about the girls' personalities at this age for our scrapbook:
- It's impossible not to laugh when Evie smiles, all over dimples
- It's impossible for your heart not to melt when Abbie smiles
-The girls love for Nathan to come home, they stand at the top of the stairs and scream and reach for him until he makes it up the stairs.
- Abbie is still daddy's girl and beams when she sees him and is most content in his arms
- Abbie loves to eat spaghetti and smears it all over her face, she's also a big fan of donut holes
- Both girls still love dogs with a close recent second being big trucks
- They are wearing 18 month clothes
- They are starting to give each other more hugs and holds hands in the car pretty frequently
- They are beginning to pat their bunnies instead of just throwing them on the floor after they kiss them :) : update- they go nowhere without the bunnies these days, it's really cute
- They are beginning to "sing" along to the music in the car
- They started speech therapy this month and saying many new words: car, apple, Bible ("ible" most of the time), ouch, bracelet, ball, etc. They are really beginning to mimic everything
- Beginning to enjoy dipping their food which is a lifesaver when trying to get them to eat something they don't want

 

Welcome Home Video

Our dear, dear friend Erin offered to take pictures of our arrival back from China at the airport. She's such a talented photographer and we'll forever cherish the amazing photos she took. They truly are priceless. She also surprised us with a slideshow she put together of all the photos. For some reason blogger doesn't recognize the you tubhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J9zB_bYlxo8&feature=youtu.bee link so I've just included it. What a blessing to have to show the girls how loved they were before all of our friends and family even knew them!

http://youtu.be/J9zB_bYlxo8

We're Alive!

We sort of fell off the face of the earth but we're coming up for air now. We're so very blessed that we get to parent these girls. They are just the cutest things we've ever seen. God is so incredibly gracious to us and these girls are just a daily reminder of it. Of course they are also a ton of work! :) They've definitely rocked our world but they are worth every ounce of energy. I just wrote an update for the foster parents so for the sake of time I'm copying it here. --The girls are doing great! We can tell they were very, very loved. They have bonded to us quickly. Evie has bonded more strongly to me and Abbie to Nathan. The first week they grieved a lot and it was tough on us all, but with each passing day we can see new ways they are getting more comfortable with us. They are eating well, especially meat! :) Evie is a bit more willing to try new foods and loves to play with her food. Abbie is thrilled when Nathan gets home from work....she beams. He's able to come home for lunch so they do get to see him a good bit during the day. We are still getting them to sleep in ergo carriers so it's a bit tricky when he can't make it home. We've relied on car rides and then me transferring them to their cribs. Tonight was the first night I got both of them to sleep in the house. It took a while and but eventually they drifted off. They both love bananas, bottles, swimming, being outside and bath time. They also still get very excited about putting on their shoes. We have little cozy coupes and they always squeal with they see them. They also have a special squeal for their stuffed animals, particularly a bunny and tiny bear. They are sleeping ok. Evie fights it the most and wakes most frequently. We've visited our pediatrician as well as a pediatric cardiologist and they both say the girls are "as healthy as a horse". :) Evie's hole in her heart has completely closed and Jing Yi's is very small and will most likely close in the next 6 months. Praise the Lord for His goodness to us and the girls. We just thought we loved the girls before getting them. We absolutely adore them and are aware each day of the huge blessing of getting to enjoy these precious children. We will be celebrating their second birthdays this coming weekend with my family and Nathan's. It should be a lot of fun. This is such a blessing since we prayed countless nights for God to allow us to get them before their second birthday.

 

 

 

 

We're home

We made it!! We were unsure during the last couple of hours of the flight. We were delayed due to weather then had to wait to taxi to the gate. We were on the plane around 17 hours! The girls did sleep around 8 hours which was such a blessing! Thanks so much for your prayers. The girls are absolutely the most adorable things we've ever seen. We're blown away by God's goodness to us! Jet lag is killing us but the girls finally slept around 6-7 hours last night. It was fretful and not consecutive hours but seven hours none the less. Nathan and I are still figuring out sleep since they move around so much in the night. We're getting to see more and more of their personalities and sweetness. They respond well to routine and we passed the hurdle of the car seat. The first time was brutal for all of us but day two it was as if they'd ridden in them their whole lives. We're looking forward to getting our days and nights straight. Abbie is still very attached to Nathan while Evie is attached to me. We're a little nervous about him returning to work since Evie almost always falls apart when I hold Abbie. We're hoping they'll adjust quickly. Considering all the transition the girls are doing exceptionally well. Praise God for His goodness and mercy!

Nathan's first Father's Day

Thankful for a row to ourselves on the plane

Please Pray!

Hey everyone! I'm asking on Kim and Nathan's behalf to please pray for their flight back home with those two precious girls! She said that they leave (our time) early Thursday morning at 12:40 a.m.. They have a layover for about two hours, and then leave around 7:30 a.m. In other words, pray before you go to bed tonight and all day Thursday:) They arrive at 8 p.m. in Altanta, GA.