Two firsts (make that three) today!!

Today was the first day of school and we had two firsts! A kindergartner and a middle schooler! Check them out! We practiced getting up early all last week, just to make sure they were ready. At 6:30 am this morning, I went into Gabbrielle's room and whispered, "today is the first day of school", at which she leaped out of bed and went running downstairs (no worries!) Bethany had herself up without prompting and ready in 20 minutes. We all took Gabbrielle to school and walked her in. A tiny bit of sadness at the first farewell, but she was definitely excited. We then took Bethany to school and walked her to the front door - too big to actually walk in apparently :-( Chloe loved going along for the ride. She gets to enjoy having Daddy all to herself today!

Our third "first" - John and I started the P90X today! For our sake (and yours) we are going to spare ya'll the "before" photos and we'll look forward to posting the "after" photos. Day one (chest and back) was tough to say the least. In fact, I'm having a hard time typing this because it hurts to lift my arms up :-)



Our big kindergartner! (literally, she was a head and a half taller than all the other kids in her class)

Our grown up middle schooler! (wow, time really does fly)

The Power of Advertising :-)

I thought I'd comment on the power of advertising. While watching Dora (or one of those shows for kiddos), the commercial came on for a new craft idea, called Paperoni! Everytime we saw this commercial, Gabbrielle was ecstatic. "We got to have those Mom! They don't need any glue." (Which, I must admit, is a plus for her :-) Anyway, I proceeded to explain to her that I don't like to buy things off the tv (she kept giving me the 1-800 number). I said if it is a good product, it will eventually be in the stores, and we'll check it out then (at least I thought I was putting it off for a while). Well, today we went to Target and, low and behold, what was the first thing Gabbrielle saw. PAPERONI!!!! and yes, I bought it, and yes, it is pretty cool and the kids had a great time doing it. But, it also gave me the perfect "opportunity" to teach them about the power of advertising. :-) Here are some pics of the girls and I making a fish and a doggy with the "glueless" paperoni!

Check out the new sparkle on Gabbrielle's ears! This was a recent addition that she is very proud of :-) She was so brave, she didn't even flinch when they pierced either one.

Fun with Friends!

We had a busy and fun weekend! Saturday we had a swim party with some of Bethany's rock climbing friends and their families. The kids had a blast swimming, eating and "dressing up" :-)

Bethany, Charlie, Chloe, Michael-yes, they convinced him to wear a dress:-) and Rita

We also attended the Team Texas Banquet this weekend. All the kids got dressed up and we headed to the Lantana Golf Club for dinner. The coaches honored the graduating team members with a special video and honored all of the kids by talking about each one individually. It's a special group of kids, parents and wonderful coaches!

Michael, Bethany, Coach Kyle, Claire and Rita

Michael, Bethany, Claire and Charlie

They grow up too fast!

Michael, Coach Kyle, Rita, Coach Stan and Bethany

Daddy and daugther :-)

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Now it's officially time to get back into the groove of the school year! The kids are definitely ready to go back. This picture pretty much says it all :-)

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Adoption update: We received FBI clearance today.

A few more documents ready for our dossier!

Home Study!!

Adoption Update: Wow...the last 2 1/2 weeks flew by and we had our home study this morning. Everything went great, much stress and worry over nothing, as usual. This was the last step in our Gladney application! Once the homestudy is finalized, it will be the last piece needed for Gladney approval, CIS approval and for our dossier! We continue to pray daily for the little guy we don't know yet, but who is already growing in our hearts, and to seek God's timing and will for us. Gabbrielle is having a harder time waiting, in fact, she was convinced that the lady who did our homestudy was going to be bringing her baby brother with her. Time is a tough concept to a 5 year old, especially when she already has all the things planned that she wants to teach her little brother :-) Very sweet.


Bethany - rock climbing


Chloe - ready for gymnastics!


Gabbrielle - ready for ice skating!

Summer Fun!

Gabbrielle and Chloe convinced Mimi that she must ride in the race car at Chuck E Cheese :-)







The girls are enjoying staying cool this summer! They had a blast when cousin Kim came to visit! Check out Bethany sporting a cap! She wanted to be just like her beautiful little sisters ;-)


Adoption Update: Another large packet of information will be off tomorrow for our dossier, 10 of the required documents! Our home study is just 6 days away. We are getting close to getting all of the checklist items done and soon we'll be just waiting for (hopefully) approvals from all the agencies! We are thanking him daily for walking us through this process and praying continuously for our little boy's, God willing, safety and comfort.