Much Needed Update

Life has been super busy. And I don't see it slowing down any time soon.
The girls are growing up fast. Tiffani is talking about wanting to get her learners permit. She turns 15 in April. Abby is literally growing tall. We are surprised with how much taller she is than Jadyn right now. And Jadyn is counting down the days until she is 6. Two more days! She's excited. We also are waiting for the travel call, any day now. We anticipate meeting Ethan on Jan 11th. We are excited.

I have a bunch of photos in this slide show from the last month or two.

Tiff has finished marching band for this year. She is sad. But I'm relieved. We now get to see Tiff again. Newsome came in 3rd in their division in state. We are proud of them. Jadyn was chosen as Terrific Kid for Cooperation at school. They did a ceremony and she received a bumper sticker, certificate & pencil. She was excited. Abby has lost 5 teeth now and #6 is coming out soon. Tiffani has faced her fear of Tower of Terror, and she went on the ride with dad & her friend Brooks. She got off the ride and said she had fun and it was awesome. She can't wait to do it again.

Jadyn has had 3 birthday celebrations. We celebrated with our families during Thanksgiving. And then she had a tea party with 4 friends. She loved it. We had "tea" (lemonade) and some snack foods. Then cupcakes and the best part, presents. She had fun. We also played games and laughed a lot.

The girls are excited about Christmas. They love the decorations. They love knowing it's Jesus' birthday.

Last night we went to The North Pole. We took The Polar Express there. The girls were excited. And they had fun. The train ride was fun. Then when we arrived at the North Pole, there were a lot of fun activities to do. Tattoos, crafts, making reindeer food, and hot chocolate & cookies. And of course, SANTA was there. After we met Santa, it was time to eat. They sold hot dogs & chips etc. The girls had fun and they were exhausted when we left.

One more week of school. And this is another busy week. Tomorrow (Dec 14) is Bills birthday. We are hoping that he & I can drive up to Disney for a few hours, alone. Disney is giving you a free day for your birthday. Since we have annual passes, Bill will get a gift card for the amount of a day's admission. Tomorrow night Tiff is playing her flute at her friend Hannah's recital. Tuesday is Jadyn's birthday and Bill is planning on taking Jadyn to Disney, alone, to get her gift certificate, and to spend some one on one time with her. She does not know about this yet. Next Sunday the girls are singing in church in the Christmas musical. They are excited. Friday is the last day of school for 2009. Where has this year gone?

We think that we'll be in China in 4 weeks. So 3 1/2 more weeks here with just the girls. So much to do!

We have set up a travel website for Ethan. It is www.ethanwilliam.com

Here are the photos I've promised. Enjoy!

Thanksgiving & Black Friday

Well we had a wonderful Thanksgiving. It was just the 5 of us this year. Very low key. Bill & I started the turkey and could not wait for it to be finished. We watched the Macy's parade. My dad marched in it. He was on TV. That was cool to see. We ate around 1:30 and then I wanted to crash. The turkey kicked in.


We put up our tree last night and it looks really good. The girls loved seeing all of their ornaments. Now we have to get the outside decorated. I just love Christmas time.

This morning, Tiff & I woke up way too early (4:30 AM) and headed out to meet my sister at Wal-Mart. We got there at 5:30 to a parking lot full of cars. We even saw an accident in the parking lot. Tiff & I finally made it in the store, only to find no more shopping carts and long lines everywhere. We managed to find Denise (and picked up some things on the way). We did find a shopping cart eventually. One thing I have to say about Wal-Mart, is they were prepared with merchandise. I did not expect to find anything on my list. And I found everything. We were in Wal-Mart about an hour or so and then headed to check out. We found a "short" line and maybe waited 20 min or so. Then we went to Super Target. It was 7:15 and Target had been open for a little over an hour. I get there to a parking lot that looked like a normal shopping day. I was able to park in the 3rd parking space in the lane, plus there were empty spaces next to me. We walked into the store to find tons of shopping carts. It was not like a "Black Friday" day at Target. Very odd. I'm starting to wonder if it's because they did not print out an add. After Target, we went for breakfast then Linen's & Things (not much in there left) and then I headed home. I'm not feeling well at all and needed some meds. Tiff & Denise are still out shopping. I hope they find some good deals. Here are 2 photos of us in line at Wal-Mart. We did have fun. I just wish I was not sick.



This final photo Tiff took as we were leaving Wal-Mart. I thought it was a pretty shot of the sunrise.


As I sit and listen to the chatter of little girls running through the house, I'm reminded of all that I'm thankful for. So much! I'm thankful that God has allowed me to be a mom to 3 beautiful daughters. I'm thankful that he has allowed me to have a loving husband. I'm thankful to have family & friends who love me. I'm thankful for so much.

Bunk Beds, Birthday Party & Preschool Thanksgiving

Wow, a lot to update in this post. Where has November gone? I can't believe tomorrow is Thanksgiving. And then Christmas will be here very soon. I feel so overwhelmed.....
First I have to let you know, we did it, again! We set up bunk beds and moved the girls into the same room. They have been in the room together now for 10 days. And it's going well. They have been sleeping and loving being together. We set up the other room as a playroom, for now. Who knows, it might turn into a bedroom for another child. We're talking about adopting again. :-) So anyway, here is a photo I took of the girls one morning when they were waking up. Don't you love the bed head? Jadyn is on the top, Abby on the bottom.


This past Saturday we had a combined birthday party for Jadyn & her friend Isabella. We went to a little petting farm. They had a hayride & then pet some animals. They got to feed a cow and a donkey. The kids had a blast. One thing we did not expect was the weather. It was COLD! It did not warm up like it usually does. But that's okay, the kids did not mind. Here is a slide show of the party. Jadyn's actual 5th birthday is Dec 15th. I just chose to have a friend party early.


Yesterday the preschool had their Thanksgiving feast. They are off from school now so they had it on the last day. The kids wore their Native American hats. Jadyn even was given a Native American name. It was "Falling Rain". The kids got their lunches and headed outside where there were blankets ready for them to sit at. We were outside about 10 min and then it started to rain, and got cold. Finally Jadyn's teacher said "Lets go" and brought everyone back inside. The kids finished their feast in their classrooms. It was fun. The kids were cute. Here is a slide show.


Tomorrow we will be having Thanksgiving with just the 5 of us. It will be nice and relaxed. We'll get up and have breakfast. We'll make our Thanksgiving meal while the Macy's parade is on. My dad is in the parade this year so be sure to watch. He is in the Second Time Arrounder's Marching Band from St. Pete FL. We're excited to watch. Then after we eat and take naps :-) I hope to get our Christmas tree up.

Friday Tiff & my sister Denise plan on getting up early and doing the Black Friday sales. I'm not sure how much we'll get done. I hope there are some good sales.

I want to wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. I know that I'm Thankful for so much this year.

Until next time......