Merry Christmas!

I hope everyone had a wonderful and blessed Christmas. We had a good day of family fun. I think the kids are on toy overload now!

We didn't get a White Christmas, but we certainly got a cold and windy one. I am ready for this wind to leave town. Other than that, it was a very pleasant day. Here are a few pictures, and there are over 200 at DropShots!

Christmas Eve


Christmas Morning




With Their Gifts from Mommy & Daddy




Christmas at Grandma & Grandpa's




The final picture is an unexpected one after lunch. Cindy took a liking to Aunt Emily and kept wanting to sit on her lap. Isaiah wasn't too sure about sharing his Mommy! But, we eventually got a cute picture of all 3 of them together.

She's Officially Ours!

Yesterday was a wonderful day. We finalized Cindy's adoption. She is now our daughter in the eyes of the law and she is a U.S. citizen. Hooray! What a Christmas gift!

She was a in a very good mood and laughed, ran, and twirled all around the courtroom. We were afraid she'd squirm and be loud during the actual hearing, but Ryan gave her his normally forbidden cell phone and that kept her entertained. When our lawyer made his opening remarks, he mentioned that we had finalized Kaden's adoption 2 1/2 years ago. Kaden got so excited when he heard his name and told Grandma & Grandpa, "That's me!" Only Ryan, Cindy, and I were up front, so we didn't see him, but we knew something must have happened because the judge smiled and gave a little chuckle!

We started our morning by going to breakfast at the Green Bean. Then we headed over to the courthouse. Later that day we prepared for Cindy's Finalization Party. We had about 25 people attend. It was a lot of fun and I think Cindy had a really great time. Until she got tired, she was dancing, twirling, and being a general show-off (as was her big brother). Once she got tired, the crankiness set in, but she still did pretty well!

Here are some pictures from our big day:

Cindy eating a biscuit at the Green Bean

Cindy with Grandma & Grandpa

Happy girl with Mommy

Laying on the floor after twirling in the courtroom

The whole family with Judge Dixon

It's Beginning to Look a lot like Christmas!

Wow! December is already flying by. It's busy, busy, busy as usual. The kids are enjoying the festivities and our advent calendar. Kaden thinks that Santa's elves leave him a Hershey kiss each day. It's cute. Speaking of Santa, Kaden got a personalized message from him. You should have seen his face when Santa said his name! You can watch it HERE.

Yesterday we were finally able to get our professional photos taken. As always, I am second guessing my choices. I always feel like I buy the wrong ones. Luckily, we get a C.D. of the photos so I can put them on the computer and enjoy them that way. Here are some of our favorites from the day.










Today I am taking Kaden to the Christmas pageant. I hope he will be able to sit still and be quiet long enough. I think he will really enjoy the camels and other animals. He's also a lover of music, so I think he'll like the songs as well. It'll be fun to share this experience with him. I know it always helps to get me in the Christmas spirit.